Smyrna times., 1887-09-07


with the heart and mind of q woman, and
of woman who has suffered"
"And have 1 not suffered? Do YOU
think because you see me tripping through
| some foolish, insipid role that am capable
of nothing better? Give me u chance, and
| see what 1 can do.
Oh, bid me leap, rather than marry Paris,
1 began, and declaimed the speech with
such despairing vigor that our manager
was impressed.
Well the end of it was, he yielded to
my suggestion. 1t seemed q prosperous
time to float new Juliet. At neigh
boring theatre lovely foreign actress was
playing the part nightly to crowded
houses. We might get some of the over
! flow, or the public would come for the
sake of comparing native with imported
! talent. Oh! the faces Of my traducers
who had said, '"Those Gascoigne girls
have 10 feeling for art, when it was
known that they were out Of the bill, and
that Sibyl GaScOignc was to play Shake
spearc. l absolutely forgot Jack for one
whole minute. But the next, my grief
my desolatiOn, were present to me with
more acuteness than ever. And was glad
that it was so. Such agony as 1 was en-
during would surely make INC play Juliet
| as it had never been played before.
At rehearsals l could see I created a
sensation. felt that l was grand in my
hopeless love, my desperate grief 1
| should make myself q name. If Jack
were dead or had forsaken me, my art
should be all in all.
The morning before the all important
| evening dawned. l had lain awake nearly
an hour, as was my custom Of nights
now, thinking of Jack, wondering if ever
woman had SO much cause to grieve as I.
| Then l rose, practiced taking the friar's
potion, and throwing myself upon the bed
until my mother came up and told me to
! 60 to sleep or my eyes would be red and
! hollow in the morning. But 1 told my
mother that hollow eyes and pale checks
| were necessary to me now; that my career
depended on the depths of my despair.
Tomorrow, mother, let no one disturb
me on any account. Keep away letters,
newspapers, everything. Tomorrow
am Juliet or nothing"
My mother promised, and I rot some
hours of UndiSturbed slumbcr
HcDearsal was Over-the last rehearsal.
had gone through my part thinking of
my woes had swallowed the draught as
| If it had indeed been a potion to put me out
I of all remembrance of my misery. l had
| snatched the dagger ana stabbed myself
even as / often felt tempted to do in real
life And then l set off home, feeling
that if life were bereft for me of all iov, if
/ WAS doomed to sink, unwedded, to the
grave, l should at least have the satisfac-
ton Of cOnfounding my enemies and
| triumphing over them.
was passing Charing Cross station,
delayed a little whc by the streams of
vehicles issuing forth, when in hanson
at little distance l saw form-a face
which made me start and tremble, and
turn hot and cold and red and white
all at the same time. 1t could not be
Jack. 1t Oughtn't, mustn't, shouldn't be
Jack. Had not to act in suffering and
despair tonight? We'll, even if he had re-
| turned in safety from his cruise, it was
without II thought OF me in his heart
He was ngaged-married-fOr aught l
knew. 1t was possible, nay certain, that
l should never sec him again.
And yet | ran all the way home. And
yet l told the servant breathlesSly, eff any
! visitors call l don't wish to be disturbed. /"
And yet l made my mother repeat the
! promise she had given me the previous
| night Then flew to my den NJ the top
! of the house, bOlted myself in, aud set q
! chair against the door, as if l were afraid
| of any one making forcible entry. 1
stuffed my fingers in my cars and went
/ over my part with vigor, with more noise
even than was absolutely necessary. Still
| how strangely l seemed to hear every
/ sound. A hanson passing--nO, hanson
/ drawing up at our house. / went as far
J from the window as possible. l wedged
/ myself up between the sofa and the wall,
and | shut my eyes firmly. Surely there
/ 1serc unaccustOmed noises about. talking
aaRd laughing, as if something pleasant
/ had happened. Presently heavy footsteps
came bounding up two stairs at time.
/ Oh! should l have the courage not to
answer if & should be ia?
] But it wasn't. Kitty's voice shouted
|'Sybil, Sybiii como down. Heres''-
<-Kitty, be,qUiet," " called out furiously.
| eff You don't hOh your tongue, if YOU
don't 90 away from the door Immediately,
/ I9l-l'll shoot yOu.'S
I She went away, and heard her telling
! them down stairs that she believed Sybil
had gone mad
waited little longer, then stole to
| the window. Surely Juliet would not be
/ spOilt by the sight of Il visitor leaving the
house. But there was no one leaving.
Indeed, | saw the prospect of n fresh ar
riva2-lsabcl Chisholm was coming up the
street in a bran new costume, and hat to
! match Her fringe was curlet9 to per-
! fection A tinyveil was arranged coduet-
tishly inst above her nose Flesh and
| blood could not stand this. Down stairs !
| darted, without waiting even for a look in
the glass Into the drawing room ]
| bounced, and there, in his six feet two Of
| comely manltEess, stood Jack, my Jack,
! mCre bronzed ;gGd handsome and lovable
than ever. He whom l had mOurned by
turns as dead and faithless, but whom ]
now knew was Eoither, for he came
toward me with both hands outstretched
4 aud he held mine in such loving clasp
! and nc looked at me with eyes which
knew were reading just sncb another tale
as that written on his own face.
Then when the knock sounded which
/ heralded Miss Chisholm he said:
! Come into another room, Sybil; 1 have
\ so much to say to you"
And in that other room he told mo OF
his adventures and perils, and how through
/ them all he had thought of me, and won
/ dered if he never came back alive, whether
| l should be sorry; and if he did come back,
whether would promise to be his darling
| little wife very, very soon.
But oil this, though far moro beautiful
than poet ever wrote, was not Shake
'speare, and l had to act Juliet tonight
/ Juliet the wretched, the heart broken
while my own spirits were dancing, and
my pulses bounding with joy and delight
unutterable.
Well, l need hardly tell you my Juliet
was not success. / was conscious OF
tripping about the stage in an airy, elated
| way, which was allowable during the
earlier scenes; but when 1 should have
been tragic and desperate I was still
brimming over with my new found joy.
/ All through Juliet's grand monolOgue,
where she swallows the poison, ran
the refrain, "Jack has come home,
( I'm going to marry Jack" had an
awful fear once that / mixed the two
names a little and called on JaclIimo
| when should have said Romeo And
| when my speech was over and 1 lay
motiOnless ON the bed, gave myself up to
such delightful thoughts that Capulet OF
the friar, l forget which, bending over the
couch to assure himself was really dead,
] whispered:
Keep quiet; you're grinning."
was very glad when the play was over.
We 0tten read tho reverse side Of the
/ pictme-of how the clown cracks Jokes
while his heart is breaking; perhaps his
only mother-in-law passing away without
his arms to support her But no one has
| ever written Of the Juliet who goes